By Jake Donovan
Don’t be fooled by Adonis Stevenson’s immediate reaction to the possibility of a mouthwatering showdown with Sergey Kovalev. All parties involved in Saturday’s HBO-televised light heavyweight doubleheader were aware the telecast was designed to create future interest in such a clash.
The pair of knockout artists did their part on fight night. Stevenson successfully defended his World light heavyweight championship with a 6th round stoppage of England’s Tony Bellew in the evening’s main event at Colisée de Quebec (nee Pepsi Coliseum). The televised co-feature saw Kovalev tear through Ismayl Sillakh, scoring two knockdowns en route to an emphatic 2nd round knockout.
Even before the fight, Stevenson and his handlers held Kovalev’s skill set in high regard. Furthermore, there was no mystery as to why fans were already clamoring for an eventual head-on collision.
Kovalev is very spectacular, skilled, strong, powerful and has a lot of determination,” promoter Yvon Michel says of the Russian puncher who, like Stevenson, enjoyed a breakout 2013 campaign. “It is normal for him to aim at Stevenson who has more credential then him in terms of quality of opposition lately and also have a growing home fan base, something Kovalev does not have.
“What we are aiming for Adonis is the most prestigious and profitable fight out there next. In that department Bernard Hopkins, Andre Ward, Carl Froch, Jean Pascal and Lucian Bute are well ahead of Kovalev. If Kovalev keeps winning (in this) fashion he might shortly get the proper qualifications.”
Kovalev’s statement-making knockout of Sillakh was his seventh straight stoppage, including four in 2013, to advance to 23-0-1 (21KO). The bout was his second straight on HBO, arriving in style with a 4th round stoppage of then-unbeaten light heavyweight titlist Nathan Cleverly this past August.
Stevenson has also scored four knockouts in 2013, including three straight on HBO. Many have the Haitian-Canadian as the leading candidate for Fighter of the Year; those same fans and media pundits alike won’t be as celebratory if he doesn’t do his part to make a clash with Kovalev a reality in the near future.
A post-fight interview with HBO’s Max Kellerman had Stevenson acknowledging Kovalev as an immediate threat. However, he instead played to Canada’s honor, calling for showdowns with Carl Froch and Bernard Hopkins who between them own three combined wins over the nation’s two favorite sons, Jean Pascal and Lucian Bute, who meet on January 18 in their own HBO headliner.
The natural course of action for Stevenson would be to challenge the winner of that clash if he feels the need to look elsewhere for his next payday. However, no matter what he says or where he looks, his handlers are well aware of what fate has in store.
“(Stevenson and Kovalev) are destined to meet one day in a classic puncher’s clash,” Michel admits.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of Boxingscene.com, as well as the Records Keeper for the Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and a member of Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox